Murder-free Maywood marks an awkward anniversary

June 14, 2010

Maywood Police Chief Tim Curry found himself in an awkward position today.

As of 3:09 a.m., his village had gone a full year without a homicide, noteworthy for a community that two years ago averaged one a month. Village officials, who have scheduled a news conference Tuesday to announce the milestone, were unable to recall a previous year without a killing.

"I don't want to make this some sort of celebration," Curry said this afternoon. "But I also feel it's important for people to know that we've had a period of peace. It's something to be remembered, not necessarily celebrated."

The closest thing to a festive atmosphere on the one-year anniversary may have been Jackie Clayburn sitting on the front steps of her apartment watching her daughter and three other neighborhood girls jumping rope. Across 19th Avenue, three other girls were doing the same.

"I feel that it's been a lot better," she said. "It's quieter, and we used to not sit outside. Now, we can sit out until about 8 o'clock and still feel safe."

Curry, a 25-year veteran of the police force who said he spends 60 percent of his time on the street, gave credit to a simple measure he emphasized since becoming chief two days before the last homicide in Maywood: Police officers target loiterers.

"Loitering is usually the root of hanging out discussing the crime they're about to commit," Curry said. "It also makes the people who are loitering potential victims."

In addition, Curry said loitering "presents a picture (of Maywood) that we don't want portrayed."

So typically, officers will start asking questions of groups or an individual standing around, Curry said. If the answers are ambiguous, the officers will encourage the individuals to keep moving. If the officers return later to find the area still occupied by loiterers, the police start asking for identification and may check for outstanding warrants, search the individuals or arrest them for loitering, Curry said.

Some of Maywood's estimated 26,000 residents, including Clayburn, have noticed.

"What I like the most is that people aren't hanging out on the street corners," she said. "And another reason I feel safe is right over there." Clayburn pointed to a security camera atop a street light, one of 79 in Maywood, and smiled.

Jeffrey Williams, who said he has lived in Maywood for nearly a decade, said he has felt safer in recent years. Police respond to calls quickly and in reassuring numbers, he said.